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SOUTH ASIA INTELLIGENCE REVIEW
Weekly Assessments & Briefings
Volume 14, No. 26, December 28, 2015
Data and
assessments from SAIR can be freely published in any form
with credit to the South Asia Intelligence Review of the
South Asia Terrorism Portal
|
Manipur:
Approaching Stability
Deepak
Kumar Nayak
Research
Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management
On December
22, 2015, a 55-year-old Assamese man, identified as Dinbashis
Boro, was shot dead by unidentified assailants inside
his rented house at Thangmeiband Thingel Maru under the
Imphal Police Station in Imphal West District. An unnamed
Police official associated with the investigation disclosed,
"We are looking into the possibility of some militant
group being responsible for killing the businessman for
not paying as demanded by them. We learnt that the victim
had paid some militant groups once or twice in the past.
We are looking into all angles."
On August
22, 2015, a civilian identified as S. Walunglua Aimol
aka Manglun (45), was shot dead by suspected armed
cadres of the Isak-Muivah faction of the National Socialist
Council of Nagaland (NSCN-IM)
at Aimol Ngairong village under the Tengnoupal Police
Station in Chandel District. He was allegedly opposing
attempts to co-opt the Aimol tribe within the Naga identity.
On May
12, 2015, two labourers identified as Abung and Premanand,
were killed during ‘interrogation’ by an unidentified
militant group at Maipou Khullen in Senapati District.
According
to partial data collated by the South Asia Terrorism
Portal (SATP), civilian fatalities, at 17 in 2015,
declined by 15 per cent from the 20 registered during
the corresponding period of the preceding year (all data
till December 27, 2015). This the lowest number of civilian
fatalities recorded in the first 361 days of a year in
the state since 1992 [the year since which SATP data is
available]. Civilian fatalities have been declining since
2008, when they stood at 131. Civilian fatalities peaked
in 1993, when 266 were recorded. The decline is indicative
of improvements in the general security environment of
the state.
The visible
improvement is largely due to the more active role played
by the Security Forces (SFs). Thus, SFs eliminated 23
militants in 2015, as against nine in 2014, an increase
of 155.55 per cent. Some of the militants killed in 2015,
included, ‘sergeant’ Phakuiring Khongyo aka Akhui
of Manipur Naga Revolutionary Front (MNRF), on May 23;
‘sergeant’ Prem of Revolutionary People's Front (RPF)
on March 31; 'home secretary' of the Lanheiba faction
of the United Revolutionary Front (URF-Lanheiba) Puyam
Ruhinikumar aka Mongyamba (50), and its 'finance
secretary' Keithelakpam Tiken (45) on January 7. Overall
fatalities among militants in 2015 stood at 53, as against
24 in 2014, an increase of 120.83 per cent. Other than
those killed by the SFs, the remaining fatalities in both
these years resulted from factional clashes.
SFs also
arrested 478 militants through 2015, adding to 536 in
2014. The highest number of arrested militants belonged
to the United National Liberation Front (UNLF),
at 65; followed by the KCP, 62; Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup
(KYKL),
59; People's Revolutionary Party of Kangleipak (PREPAK),
55; People's Liberation Army (PLA),
40; the Progressive faction of PREPAK (PREPAK-Pro), 35;
the Khaplang faction of the National Socialist Council
of Nagaland (NSCN-K),
21; the Nehlun faction of the Kuki National Front (KNF-N),
13; different factions of the Kuki Revolutionary Army
(KRA),
10; nine each of the Kuki Revolutionary Front (KRF) and
the Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF); eight of NSCN-IM;
seven of the Vice-Chairman faction of PREPAK (PREPAK-VC);
six each of the Kuki National Liberation Front (KNLF),
United Liberation Front (URF) and Re-unification Kuki
Army (RUKA/KNA-I); five each of the Kuki National Army
(KNA)
and URF-Lanheiba; four each of the Coordination Committee
(CorCom), Kuki Liberation Army (KLA),
Liberation of Achik Elite Force (LAEF),
RPF, Maoist Communist Party-Manipur (MCP-M), Naga National
Council (NNC) and National Revolutionary Front of Manipur
(NRFM); three each of Hmar National Army (HNA), the Reformation
faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland
(NSCN-R) and People's United Liberation Front (PULF);
two of MNRF; one each of United Tribal Liberation Army
(UTLA), Kuki Unification Frontal Organisation (KUFO),
National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Unification (NSCN-U),
Kuki People's Liberation Front/Army (KPLF/A) and United
Naga People's Council (UNPC); and 13 others, whose affiliation
was unconfirmed.
Unsurprisingly,
with aggressive counter-insurgency operations across the
State, SF losses have also mounted. In 2015, fatalities
among the SFs stood at 24 as against 10 in 2014, an increase
of 140 per cent. This is the highest number of fatalities
among SFs since 2007, when the number stood at 40.
With multiple
factions operating, factional clashes among militant formations
in Manipur have always been a significant aspect of violence.
While the SFs killed 23 militants in 2015, 30 were killed
in factional clashes (in 20 incidents). In 2014, out of
24 militants killed, 15 were reported killed in 14 such
fratricidal incidents. Manipur Deputy Chief Minister Gaikhangam,
speaking at the 124th Raising Day of the Manipur
Police in Imphal on October 19, 2015, observed that there
were more than 40 insurgent groups operating in the State.
Gaikhangam noted that, apart from the violence of underground
outfits and their numerous frontal organizations, small
groups of armed mercenaries were also resorting to abduction
for ransom, extortion and other unlawful activities.
Not surprisingly,
total insurgency-related fatalities, at 94 in 2015 increased
by 74 per cent over the 54 recorded during the corresponding
period of 2014. 46 incidents of killing were recorded
in 2015, as compared to 40 in 2014. The number of major
incidents (each involving three or more fatalities) in
2015 also increased two-fold, with eight such incidents
resulting in 45 killed and 33 injured, as against four
incidents in 2014, with 11 fatalities and four injured.
There was
a downturn in incidents of explosion, of which 54 were
recorded in 2015, resulting in eight killed and 40 injured,
as compared to 66 in 2014, with 15 fatalities and 76 injured.
Incidents of violence were reported from eight out of
the nine Districts in the State, both in 2015 and 2014.
On December 1, 2015, the Manipur Government extended the
controversial Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA),
1958, in the State by another year. Manipur Government
spokesperson M. Okendro Singh stated that the decision
to extend the Disturbed Area status of Manipur for another
year was taken after collecting data from Police and Central
Forces. AFSPA is enforced in areas designated as Disturbed
Areas.
The State
also recorded an increase in the number of extortion and
abduction incidents registered during the current year.
46 extortion cases were reported during 2015; as compared
to 31 in 2014 [actual incidence is likely to be much higher
as a large proportion of cases go unreported]. An October
29, 2015, media report indicated that NSCN-IM was allegedly
charging INR 2,000 every month from each Government employee
working in the Chandel District Headquarters. There were
at least 29 incidents of abduction registered in 2015,
with 51 persons abducted; in 2014, 34 incidents resulting
in 50 abductions are on record.
The United
National Liberation Front of Western South East Asia (UNLFWSEA),
a newly formed platform of four militant outfits of the
Northeast region, is trying to rope in at least another
nine outfits of the region into the platform, to launch
a united struggle against the Government of India (GoI).
So far, four outfits – NSCN-K, United Liberation Front
of Asom–Independent (ULFA-I), IK Songbijit faction of
the National Democratic Front of Bodoland (NDFB-IKS) and
the Kamatapur Liberation Organization (KLO) – are the
constituents of UNLFWSEA.
On October
15, 2015, Paresh Baruah, ‘commander-in-chief’ of ULFA-I,
pointed out that seven militant outfits of Manipur have
already formed a common platform called CorCom and were
likely to join UNLFWSEA, of which six were ready to join
‘immediately’: “But we want the entire CorCom to join
us. They have some problem with one of the constituents
and we are hoping that they can settle their problems
soon so that the entire CorCom can join us. We are expecting
that the seven outfits of Manipur will be joining hands
with us within this year.” Baruah also claimed that one
Tripura group would also be joining the front ‘soon’.
In another
adverse development, the current year saw a slowdown in
the surrender process. Only two militants surrendered
in 2015, as against 93 such surrenders in 2014. A ‘sergeant
major’ of KYKL, Ningthoujam Chinglen aka Budha,
surrendered before the State Police at Moreh in Chandel
District on February 19, 2015; and KYKL militant Takhelchangbam
Madhumangol Sharma aka Eiga Khumbongmayum surrendered
before SFs in Imphal West District on September 11, 2015.
The surrender
of the militants has taken a hit due to the Government’s
poor rehabilitation record. A December 19, 2015, report
revealed that surrendered militants of PULF had threatened
to return to militancy if the Manipur Government failed
to extend the benefits of the surrender and rehabilitation
policy to them by January 10, 2016. Fourteen PULF militants
had surrendered with weapons to the State Government in
2012, along with 100 other militants of various groups.
Claiming that PULF cadres were yet to get any benefit
of the Centre's surrender and rehabilitation scheme even
three years after their surrender, Md. Kaji Umar, former
‘chairman’ of PULF, warned, "We are setting the deadline
for extending all the benefits to my cadres by January
10 next year (2016). If there is no response from the
Government, we may launch an agitation or go back to the
jungles."
Interestingly,
in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha (Upper House
of Parliament) on February 26, 2015, Union Minister of
State for Home Affairs Kiren Rijiju had stated that the
Government of India (GoI) had been implementing a scheme
for surrender-cum-rehabilitation of militants of the Northeast
region since 1998. The scheme provided for a one time
grant of INR 150,000, a monthly stipend/remuneration of
INR 3,500 per cadre, and incentives for weapons, etc.,
to be given to the surrenderees. In Manipur, he added,
the one-time grant was INR 250,000 and the monthly stipend/remuneration
was INR 4,000 per cadre, under a special surrender-cum-rehabilitation
scheme formulated in 2012. During the financial year 2013-14,
INR 155.5 million was released to the northeastern States
towards payment of stipend/remuneration to cadres under
the Suspension of Operations (SoO) and surrender schemes.
In a related
development, in September 2014, the Union Ministry of
Home Affairs (UMHA) had announced the raising of one battalion
each of the Border Security Force (BSF) and Sashatra Seema
Bal (SSB), comprising surrendered militants from Manipur
and Assam. The UMHA plans to recruit 750 former militants
each for the two battalions in BSF and SSB. Earlier, on
February 13, 2015, Union Home Minister (UHM) Rajnath Singh,
during his two-day visit to the State, had disclosed,
"We will soon be recruiting surrendered militants.
However, I cannot give you a time frame."
Meanwhile,
a series of developments in the northeast, especially
in Manipur, since the August 3, 2015, Peace
Accord between the Centre and the
NSCN-IM, raised serious concerns that the security situation
in the region could dramatically worsen in the coming
months. Reports estimate that 400 Nagas may have been
recruited by NSCN-IM since then. There were also reports
of the group recruiting more cadres from parts of eastern
Nagaland. NSCN-IM is believed to have had about 2,500
cadres before the Accord, and is believed to be targeting
recruitment of another 1,000 cadres, mostly from Manipur.
Sources in the security agencies are also reported to
have indicated that NSCN-IM has probably set up training
camps in the Manipur Hills to accommodate fresh cadres
and is contributing to possible new flare-ups in inter-tribe
tensions in this fragile State. Media reports further
suggest that, since the Accord, reports of extortion,
arms and drugs smuggling have registered a rising trend
in Manipur, with an unnamed official quoted as asserting,
“Most of it is being done by I-M (NSCN-IM) cadres.”
The issue
of the Inner Line Permit (ILP) continued to trouble the
State through 2015. In June, the Joint Committee on Inner
Line Permit System (JCILPS), a pro-ILP movement which
has been agitating for long to implement the system in
Manipur, restarted its agitation demanding withdrawal
of "The Manipur Regulation of Visitors, Tenants &
Migrant Workers Bill 2015". The stir intensified
with the killing of a youth in Police firing on July 8,
2015. The State faced a complete blockade on numerous
occasions. Buckling under pressure, the Government of
Manipur was forced to sign an agreement with the JCILPS
on August 25, 2015. Subsequently, on August 28, 2015,
the Manipur Legislative Assembly passed the Protection
of Manipur Peoples' Bill,
2015, the Manipur Land Revenue and Land Reforms (Seventh
Amendment) Bill,
2015 and the Manipur Shops and Establishments (Second
Amendment) Bill,
2015. These Bills place restrictions on the entry into
and exit from Manipur for Non Manipur persons and tenants;
prohibit the sale of land belonging to a Scheduled Tribe
person in the valley areas to a non Scheduled Tribe person
without the prior consent of the Deputy Commissioner concerned;
and make it mandatory for all shop owners to register
their employees, respectively. As expected, the move was
protested, with the Joint Action Committee against Inner
Line Permit (JACILP) leading the stir. The agitation intensified
as nine tribal youths were killed on August 31, 2015,
in Police firing at Churachandpur District. According
to reports, the bodies of the victims are still being
kept at a morgue as a mark of protest. H. Mangchinkhup,
the convener of the JACILP, declared, on December 9, 2015,
“We will not bury the bodies till the three Bills are
repealed. They will be kept in the morgue in Churachandpur
till our demands are met.” Meanwhile, JCILPS has threatened
to re-start its agitation from January 3, 2016, claiming
the State Government has done nothing over the three Bills
once they were referred to the President. A serious confrontation
is building up.
The security
profile in Manipur has improved enormously over the past
years, but potentially destabilizing issues and trends
persist. A multiplicity of militant formations continue
to exert efforts to restore their dominance across ethnically
polarized populations, even as a move for unification
of many of these groups with the violent armed formations
in other Northeastern States appears to be consolidating.
SFs have done extraordinary work to bring back an approximation
of normalcy to the State, but it will take enormous (and
as yet unlikely) political sagacity to ensure that the
gains they have secured through untold sacrifices are
not frittered away, as they have repeatedly been in the
past.
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Maharashtra:
Back against the Wall
Mrinal
Kanta Das
Research Assistant, Institute for Conflict Management
Six Communist
Party of India-Maoist (CPI-Maoist)
cadres surrendered before the Minister of State for Home
(Rural), Maharashtra, Ram Shinde in the Gadchiroli District
on December 22, 2015. Those who surrendered were identified
as Sainu Hedi, ‘deputy commander’ of Platoon 10, carrying
a reward of INR one million on his head; his wife Jano
Atram aka Roshni of the same platoon; armed cadres
Sandesh Mattamiand Nagesh Pada; and two others. They carried
a combined reward of INR 2.6 million on their heads.
On December
19, 2015, a teenage girl, who had joined the Maoist early
in 2015, surrendered before the Police in the Gadchiroli
District. The 14-year-old girl, a student of Class VIII
at an 'Ashram Shala' in Lahiri village of Gadchiroli,
had run away along with two other girls in January 2015.
On December
10, eight Maoists including ‘commander’ and ‘deputy commander’
rank cadres carrying a combined reward of INR 3.2 million
on their heads surrendered before the Gadchiroli Police.
They were identified as ‘section commander’ of Company
No 2 Ashok Oksha aka Deepak; ‘section commander’
of Company No 2, Ungi Madvi aka Manisha; ‘section
deputy commander’ of Company No 2, Akash Madvi aka
Vishnu; ‘deputy commander’ of the Gatta armed squad
Chaitu Kola aka Rushi; member of platoon No 3 Suresh
Kola aka Firoz, Kaansur; armed squad doctor Bali
Talandi aka Sunita; Local Operation Squad (LOS)
member Deoram Hichami aka Tirupati; and ‘commander’
of Jan Militia Lakhma Pallo aka Dasru.
These surrenders
are indicative of the sustained reverses the Maoists have
suffered over recent years, a fact they acknowledge in
their own writings. A letter recovered from an encounter
site in Maharashtra, issued on the occasion of the outfit’s
11th anniversary in September, 2015, and written by Maoist
‘central committee’ spokesperson Abhay in Gondi, talks
about the killing of about 100 cadres in the preceding
year. Earlier
writings have documented the steady
loss of cadres and areas of dominance across the country,
and the virtual decimation of the organization in Maharashtra.
According
to the South Asia Terrorism Portal (SATP) database
29, 21, 30, and eight Maoists surrendered
in 2015, 2014, 2013, and 2012, respectively, in Maharashtra.
However, according to the Gadchiroli Superintendent of
Police (SP) Sandeep Patil, as many as 142 Maoists have
surrendered in Gadchiroli District in the last four years
[2012:14; 2013: 48; 2014: 37; and 2015: 45].
One of
the reasons for the steady return of Maoists from the
hills to the mainstream could be the Maharashtra Government’s
surrender policy and the successful propagation of schemes
like ‘Kaun Banega Lakhpati' (who wants to be a millionaire).
The top Maoists who have surrendered in Maharashtra in
2015 include Gopi, 'commander' of Korchi 3 dalam
and Vijay Dugga, 'commander' of Chatgaon dalam,
with a combined reward of INR 1.2 million on their heads.
As in other
theatres of Maoist conflict, the Security Forces (SFs)
have steadily tightened the screws against the Maoists
around the Gadchiroli District of Maharashtra, the only
remaining battlefront in the State for a long time. Under
tremendous pressure since 2012 the Maoists have seen their
position worsening through 2013
and 2014.
It is now evident that the trend continues thereafter.
According
to the SATP database Maharashtra recorded 17 fatalities,
including 11 civilians, four SF personnel and two Maoists
in 2015 (data till December 27) in LWE-related incidents,
as against 30 fatalities, including nine civilians, 11
SF personnel and 10 Maoists in 2014. Significantly, all
fatalities in both years have occurred in Gadchiroli District.
Furious
over the killing of two of their senior cadres, Pramod
Kachlami aka Dalpat, a 'section commander' belonging
to Company 4 and Ranju Majji aka Kummi, in an encounter
at Kondekal near Gatta Phulbodi under Dhanora Sub-division
of Gadchiroli District, on September 3, 2015, the Maoists
in two separate incidents, set ablaze the Gadchiroli Forest
Department’s Range Office and inspection room at Perimili
on the Bhamragarh-Alapalli road on September 10, and also
burnt down a gram panchayat (village level local-self
government institution) office at Durgapur in Pendhri,
Gadchiroli District on September 9. They also called for
a one-day bandh (shut down strike) in Dhanora on
September 10 protesting the encounter. In a banner put
up at Durgapur the Maoists alleged that the Police ‘murdered’
the ‘section commander’ in a ‘fake encounter’.
Further,
SFs arrested 16 Maoists in 2015, as against 12 in 2014,
23 in 2013, 41 in 2012 and 56 in 2011. However, the arrest
of a ‘cental committee’ member identified as K. Muralidharan
aka Thomas Joseph aka Ajith from a hospital
at Talegaon Dabhade near Pune on May 8, 2015, came as
a significant blow to the Maoists. Another critical arrest
was that of a senior woman Maoist 'deputy commander’ identified
as Aruna aka Punai Devsingh Naitam (24). Further
a senior Maoist cadre, carrying an INR 500,000 reward,
was arrested from Kasturba Hospital in Wardha District
where he had been operated on a day earlier.
There has
been a clear downward trend in other patterns of violent
activities as well. The Maoists orchestrated one blast
in Gadchiroli District in 2015, as against three such
incidents in 2014, and seven in 2013. They were involved
in four arson incidents in 2015, as against one in 2014.
In one such incident on January 22, 2015, the Maoists
set on fire around 14 vehicles of an Andhra Pradesh-based
private company engaged in road construction in the Dhanora
tehsil of Gadchiroli District. The Maoists roughed
up a few labourers and their supervisor when the work
on the Gharanji-Pustola stretch was underway for the connecting
road between Edampayali and Korkoti.
Amidst
the slump in their activities in Maharashtra and elsewhere,
the Maoists are shifting focus towards recruiting active
supporters and are planning the formation of a Revolutionary
People's Council, to function parallel to local civic
bodies like panchayat samities (village committees)
and zilla parishads (district councils). This was
revealed during the interrogation of a senior Maoist cadre
arrested by the Gadchiroli Police.
Maoist
efforts to engineer a revival were confirmed by Chief
Minister Devendra Fadnavis, who also holds the Home portfolio,
on August 4, 2015, while replying to a query in the monsoon
session of the Maharashtra Legislative Council, when he
admitted that the Maoists were trying to create a base
in the Mumbai-Nashik-Pune belt. Fadnavis disclosed, “It
has come to light that in the urban and industrial belts
in these areas, the Maoists are trying to clandestinely
propagate their ideology and are creating an impression
that they are raising their voice on Dalit issues and
attracting Dalit youth to the Maoist movement.”
Meanwhile,
in a press statement, the CPI-Maoist acknowledged the
death of ‘central committee’ member, identified as Sridhar
Srinivasan aka Vijay aka Vishnu, of heart
attack on August 18, 2015. The Maoists also acknowledged
that Srinivasan was active in the Mumbai, Pune and Vidarbha
regions before his death. These revelations strengthen
the apprehension expressed by Chief Minister Fadnavis
that the rebels are trying extend their influence into
these urban spaces. The ‘central committee’ member carried
a cash reward of INR six million in Chhattisgarh alone,
besides rewards announced by several other States.
The Maoists
are in a state of crisis in Maharashtra, and SF dominance
has been established in areas that had long been dominated
by the rebels. Nevertheless, there are some signs
of complacency creeping in, as crucial
posts in the Police in the afflicted regions of the State
remain vacant over extended periods of time. The Maoists
have been pushed back at tremendous costs in treasure
and blood, and it would be tragic if this advantage is
wasted by irresponsibility and neglect on the part of
those who control the destinies of the State.
|
Weekly Fatalities: Major
Conflicts in South Asia
December 21-27,
2015
|
Civilians
|
Security
Force Personnel
|
Terrorists/Insurgents
|
Total
|
BANGLADESH
|
|
Islamist Terrorism
|
0
|
0
|
3
|
3
|
Left Wing
Extremism
|
0
|
0
|
3
|
3
|
Total (BANGLADESH)
|
0
|
0
|
6
|
6
|
INDIA
|
|
Jammu and
Kashmir
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
1
|
Manipur
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
2
|
Left-Wing
Extremism
|
|
Andhra Pradesh
|
1
|
0
|
0
|
1
|
Chhattisgarh
|
1
|
0
|
1
|
2
|
Odisha
|
2
|
0
|
0
|
2
|
Total (INDIA)
|
5
|
0
|
3
|
8
|
PAKISTAN
|
|
Balochistan
|
1
|
0
|
5
|
6
|
FATA
|
5
|
1
|
7
|
13
|
Punjab
|
0
|
0
|
5
|
5
|
Sindh
|
0
|
1
|
3
|
4
|
Total (PAKISTAN)
|
|
|
|
|
Provisional
data compiled from English language media sources.
|
BANGLADESH
Pakistani
diplomat
withdrawn
from
Bangladesh
allegedly
for
financing
JMB:
Fareena
Arshad,
second
secretary
(political)
at
Pakistan
High
Commission
in
Dhaka
city
was
withdrawn
from
Bangladesh
on
December
23
weeks
after
allegations
of
her
involvement
in
terror
financing
surfaced
in
the
judicial
statement
of
Jama'atul
Mujahideen
Bangladesh
(JMB).
JMB
operative
Idris
Sheikh,
arrested
on
November
29
in
Dhaka
city,
told
the
court
that
he
got
a
ride
from
the
Pakistani
diplomat
in
her
car
from
Baitul
Mukarram
to
Fakirerpool,
and
received
BDT
30,000
from
her.
This
is
the
second
instance
of
withdrawal
of
a
Pakistani
diplomat
from
Bangladesh.
In
January
2015,
Mazhar
Khan,
a
Pakistani
envoy
was
expelled
from
Dhaka
for
allegedly
funding
JMB
operatives.
Daily
Star,
December
24,
2015.
Organisations
like
JMB
have
been
operating
under
instructions
from
ISI,
say
Bangladeshi
officials:
Organisations
like
the
Jama'atul
Mujahideen
Bangladesh
(JMB)
have
been
operating
under
instructions
from
Pakistan's
Inter
Services
Intelligence
(ISI)
to
create
chaos
in
India's
eastern
sector,
Bangladeshi
officials
said.
With
operations
getting
more
difficult
in
Jammu
&
Kashmir,
the
ISI
has
apparently
turned
its
attention
to
Bangladesh
and
the
Indian
state
of
West
Bengal.
Times
of
India,
December
21,
2015.
No
Islamic
State
in
Bangladesh,
asserts
Home
Minister
Asaduzzaman
Khan
Kamal:
There
is
no
existence
of
Islamic
State
(IS)
in
Bangladesh
as
intelligence
agencies
do
not
have
any
evidence
of
its
existence
here,
said
Home
Minister
Asaduzzaman
Khan
Kamal
on
December
22.
Kamal
said,
“All
the
political
killings
and
attacks
on
religious
establishments
are
being
conducted
by
our
country's
militant
outfits
like
JMB
and
Ansarullah.”
All
the
attacks
are
being
carried
out
to
make
the
country
unstable
to
secure
political
gain,
he
added.
Daily Star,
December
23,
2015.
INDIA
79
youths
in
Kashmir
Valley
join
militancy,
Union
Minister
of
State
for
Home
Affairs
Haribhai
Parathibhai
Chaudhary:
79
youths
in
Kashmir
Valley
have
joined
various
terror
outfits
during
this
year,
a
figure
which
is
30
per
cent
higher
than
that
of
the
previous
year,
Rajya
Sabha
(Upper
House
of
Parliament)
was
informed
on
December
23.
Union
Minister
of
State
for
Home
Affairs
Haribhai
Parathibhai
Chaudhary
said
as
per
reports,
79
youths
have
joined
militant
ranks
during
2015
(as
on
November
30)
whereas
60
youths
joined
militant
ranks
during
the
corresponding
period
of
2014.
Daily Excelsior,
December
24,
2015.
91
militants
killed
in
Jammu
and
Kashmir,
says
report:
Security
Forces
(SFs)
have
killed
91
militants
in
counter-infiltration
and
counter-militancy
operations
this
year
so
far.
On
the
other
hand,
at
least
60
militants
managed
to
infiltrate
into
Kashmir
valley
this
year
ahead
of
snowfall.
However,
the
Multi
Agency
figures
of
the
infiltration
for
this
year’s
are
at
25
till
October.
Daily Excelsior,
December
22,
2015.
Peace
accord
recognized
Naga
sovereignty,
reiterates
NSCN-IM:
The
Isak-Muivah
faction
of
National
Socialist
Council
of
Nagaland
(NSCN-IM)
on
December
24
said
that
it
and
the
Centre
have
agreed
to
share
"sovereign
power
for
an
enduring
and
peaceful
co-existence
of
the
two
entities"
in
the
framework
agreement
signed
on
August
3.
A
statement
issued
by
the
joint
council
of
the
outfit
said,
"The
Nagas
will
have
the
right
to
exercise
their
sovereign
power
over
their
territories.
Nagas
are
the
master
of
their
land.
Our
identity
needs
to
be
recognized.
The
government
of
India
has
now
recognized
the
unique
identity
of
the
Nagas,
which
is
a
bold
step
forward."
The
Telegraph,
December
25,
2015.
Government
exploring
options
to
monitor
social
media,
says
Union
Minister
of
State
for
Home
Affairs
Haribhai
Chaudhary:
Union
Minister
of
State
for
Home
Affairs
Haribhai
Chaudhary
informed
the
Rajya
Sabha
(Upper
House
of
Indian
Parliament)
on
December
23
that
the
Government
is
exploring
options
to
monitor
social
media.
The
Union
Government
is
planning
to
establish
a
situation
room
to
analyse
social
media
in
real
time.
Hindustan
times,
December
24,
2015.
Strengthen
sanctions
regime
against
terrorists,
India
asserts
to
UNSC:
Afghan
peace
talks
without
"perceptible
reduction"
in
violence
by
the
Taliban
will
not
eliminate
risks
to
reconciliation,
India
on
December
22,
has
said
as
it
called
on
the
United
Nations
Security
Council
(UNSC)
to
strengthen
its
sanctions
regime
to
ensure
listed
terror
outfits
are
denied
safe
havens.
"India
has
always
maintained
that
any
such
peace
talks
have
to
be
Afghan-led
and
Afghan-owned
and
should
only
be
with
those
Taliban
sympathisers
who
are
willing
to
accept
and
work
within
the
Constitution
of
Afghanistan,"
India's
Deputy
Permanent
Representative
to
the
UN
Bhagwant
Bishnoi
told
a
Security
Council
debate
on
Afghanistan.
NDTV,
December
24,
2015.
NEPAL
Denying
justice
to
the
victims
of
the
armed
conflict
would
be
a
misfortunate
chapter
for
the
country,
says
TRC
Chairman
Surya
Kiran
Gurung:
Chairman
of
the
Truth
and
Reconciliation
Commission
(TRC),
Surya
Kiran
Gurung,
said
that
denying
justice
to
the
victims
of
the
armed
conflict
would
be
a
misfortunate
chapter
for
the
country.
The
TRC,
which
was
formed
in
2014,
has
completed
field
study
in
23
Districts
by
organizing
interaction
programs
with
victims.
The
TRC
has
a
mandate
of
two
years.
Myrepublica,
December
25,
2015.
PAKISTAN
Federal
Government
orders
stricter
action
against
Islamic
State
splinter
groups
across
the
country:
The
Federal
Government
directed
the
Law
Enforcement
Agencies
(LEAs)
operating
across
the
country,
especially
in
Karachi,
to
take
stricter
action
against
the
Islamic
State’s
(IS/
also
known
as
Daesh)
splinter
groups.
Following
Prime
Minister
Nawaz
Sharif’s
directives
to
the
Federal
Ministry
of
Interior,
the
LEAs
have
been
told
to
expedite
their
efforts
against
the
IS
not
only
to
weaken
them
but
to
eliminate
them
altogether.
Tribune,
December
26,
2015.
SRI
LANKA
Muslim
community
can
contribute
significantly
to
efforts
of
Government
for
reconciliation
among
all
communities,
says
President
Maithripala
Sirisena:
President
Maithripala
Sirisena
on
December
24
said
that
the
Muslim
community
can
contribute
significantly
to
the
efforts
of
Government
for
reconciliation
among
all
communities.
He
said,
"I
trust
those
who
follow
the
teachings
of
Prophet
Muhammad,
in
Sri
Lanka,
can
make
a
significant
contribution
to
building
a
nation
rich
in
tolerance,
understanding
and
reconciliation,
which
will
strengthen
the
efforts
to
take
the
country
on
the
forward
march
to
progress."
Colombo Page,
December
25,
2015.
The South
Asia Intelligence Review (SAIR) is a weekly service that
brings you regular data, assessments and news briefs on
terrorism, insurgencies and sub-conventional warfare, on
counter-terrorism responses and policies, as well as on
related economic, political, and social issues, in the South
Asian region.
SAIR is a project
of the Institute
for Conflict Management
and the
South
Asia Terrorism Portal.
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